WWE top guy John Cena has been finding success in Hollywood recently by focusing on great cameos and character work. Now, it appears he'll be following up one of those great cameos with a much larger role in the sequel to Daddy's Home. The actor has just signed to join the sequel starring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg.
The original Daddy's Home saw Will Ferrell as a stepfather who tries to get closer to his children but ends up in a battle with the kids' biological father, played by Mark Wahlberg. Wahlberg's character ends up marrying a woman with a child of her own, turning him into a stepfather as well. In the closing moments of the film, John Cena appears as Roger, the biological father of Wahlberg's stepdaughter.
Deadline is now reporting that John Cena has come on board Daddy's Home 2 to reprise his role as Roger. While it's not clear exactly how big the role will be, the word is that Cena's character will feature prominently in the new story, which would likely put him in a significant supporting role.
The plot of Daddy's Home 2 will see Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell trying to put together a great Christmas for their kids, but conflicts will arise when the fathers of the two characters come visit for the holiday. Wahlberg's father is being played by Mel Gibson, while Ferrell's dad will be played by John Lithgow.
While John Cena began his acting career as an action movie lead in WWE's own films, in recent years he's been focusing much more on comedy and on supporting roles. He played Amy Schumer's overly-masculine booty call in Trainwreck and also had a hilarious cameo in Sisters with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. His appearance in the original D__addy's Home was one of his smallest roles, but for fans of the WWE superstar, it was the perfect appearance.
John Cena has been taking more and more time off of his WWE schedule in order to do more in television and film. A larger role in Daddy's Home 2 will certainly require time off as well, though it's possible they'll be able to arrange his filming schedule so that he won't need to miss much, if any, TV. The recent WWE "expansion" now only requires most talent to be at one television show per week, which will likely allow Cena to do even more away from the ring.
